Monday, October 26, 2009

Another false gang rape claim

You need to read this all the way through, and then ask yourself: how many more boys will the teen girl in question be permitted to put behind bars? If insanity is demonstrated by repeatedly doing foolish acts and not learning from them, then our society is insane. Every time this girl accuses a boy -- any boy -- of rape, the authorities toss them in jail. They are guilty by reason of penis. With the rash of false gang rape claims in the news the past couple of months, it is time to add to our list of males vulnerable to false rape charges young men or boys who participate in group sex.

Here is what happened: Four 17-year-old boys (who are black) were falsely accused by a 15-year-old girl (who is white) (see here) of raping her. After the allegation was made, the school district jumped on the rush-to-judgment-because-a-male-has-been-accused band wagon. "We're deeply concerned about these young people and their families as well. Its very disturbing, frightening and frustrating," says the school district's Chief Adminsitrative Officer, Mary Ann Gemmill. See here Tell me, Ms. Gemmill, are you as deeply concerned about a serial false rape accuser? I would bet not.

The boys are still in jail for having sex with a minor (which is another injustice that we should acknowledge, even though it is beyond the scope of our site -- they were 17 and she was 15, and girls, we are told, mature faster than boys). Here is an excerpt from the news story:

The Immokalee football players — Kovan McSwain, Joshua Edison, Deonte Clifton and Demandrea Fuller, each 17 — were arrested around 1:30 a.m. on Oct. 16 after a 15-year-old student accused them of gang-raping her the night before outside a portable Immokalee High classroom, across campus from where a junior varsity game was being played.

Investigators say the 15-year-old later recanted the rape allegations, and admitted that she had, in fact, agreed to the sex.

Why then do the football players remain behind bars?

Because, according to Florida law, engaging in sexual activity with anyone under 16 is classified as lewd or lascivious battery, a second-degree felony.

And the law doesn’t just apply to people over 16.

“If you have two 15-year-olds who are having sex, both of them are technically committing the crime,” said Shannon McFee, a Naples attorney who regularly talks with teens about the legal consequences of underage sex. “Either or both could be prosecuted.”

Anyone 24 or older who engages in “sexual activity” with a 16- or 17-year-old can be charged with sexual battery, a second-degree felony, according to state laws.Story here

But that's not even the whole story: incredibly, another boy sits in jail because of a prior allegation the girl made against him just last month. Read the story here Here is an excerpt:

Tyrone Fuller denies ever having sex with the girl. He said that at the time the girl was dating another boy, and that her father thought it was him.

“Her dad is getting mad because he can’t control his daughter,” Fuller said.

During a jail interview with a Daily News reporter, Tyrone Fuller held up to the video visitation monitor a letter that he said was from the 15-year-old apologizing for sending him to jail. In the letter, the girl allegedly wrote that her father was trying to put Fuller “behind bars.”